Agreed C2K agreed. And Skinny, not only some virus or other sickness but I think economically the huge boom won't likely happen again as I think the economy of the world has reached a sort of growth limit. You can't forever grow an economy before she blows up.

It's interesting you know, I have a friend that owns a local bike shop. One shop, and quite successful. Dealers have been know to be all disappointed because they ordered $90,000 worth of product one year and next it was $80,000. The rep is in their face to grow and order $100,000. My friend tells them, be happy I ordered $80,000. I don't need to grow, I am happy with what i have now. More size (growth) equals more work and hassles. I seems ingrained in some people that more more more is all that matters. Yesterday out of my office window I see a huge symbol of ridiculous wealth. I think it the yacht owned by the person that owns Washington Marine. Giant boat. And another smaller one was out there too which I believe was his old one that his son floats around in. It used to have an Allouette helicopter on the back. I think to myself, why didn't you do something good with the money it cost to build those "pleasure" craft. Like give it a deserving third world country and eliminate their national dept. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dennis_Washington I think this is his small $4itty boat pictured.

Skinny, we all tend to forget that before the advent of antibiotics, simple things like the flu used to routinely wipe out 1-2 million people in less than a decade. Once the viruses and bacteria mutate enough to overcome the remaining resistant antibiotics, (and most have already done so) we could start to see pandemics on a huge scale, again.

Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistant one. -Albert Einstein

Posted By Ronald Gibson on 07/26/2013 12:45 PM Skinny, we all tend to forget that before the advent of antibiotics, simple things like the flu used to routinely wipe out 1-2 million people in less than a decade. Once the viruses and bacteria mutate enough to overcome the remaining resistant antibiotics, (and most have already done so) we could start to see pandemics on a huge scale, again.

Sorry, I have to correct this: antibiotics are used for bacterial and fungal infections. Viruses are not affected by antibiotics(because they are not really living organisims). There are some anti-viral drugs, but they are not called "anti-biotics" because they work to prevent viral replication, not outright kill a cell. And they generally only suppress the virus, not clear it from your system.

Vaccination is the best preventive (note, not a cure, because you must have a vaccination before being exposed to a virus for it to be effective) for viruses and is very effective. The problem with influenza,and some other viruses, is that it mutates so rapidly that the vaccine needs to be re-made annually. Becaue it takes a lot of research and long-lead production of custom reagent, most viruses have no vaccines available. Which is why viral epidemics are far more of a concern than bacterial,.